Don Lemon Says He Might Be ’65 to 70%’ Likely to Run for President in 2028

Former CNN anchor Don Lemon has revived discussion about his 2023 firing and said there is a significant chance he will run for president, remarks made during recent public appearances and a podcast interview.

In a Facebook post shared Oct. 7, Lemon described a visit to Harvard Kennedy School with C-SPAN, where he discussed his 2023 arrest, CNN’s editorial direction and the effect of President Trump’s administration on the press. Lemon was fired from CNN in April 2023 amid Paramount’s takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, CNN’s parent company at the time.

During the Harvard appearance, Lemon offered his explanation for his departure. “The biggest stockholder in Warner Brothers Discovery went on CNBC before they purchased it, and said that CNN needed to be more like Fox [News]…[A]nd I knew that they wanted to get rid of me when, before they took over because, you know, I know people,” he said.

He went on to describe what he said were internal discussions at the network. “Internally, what they were saying to us was they wanted to make room for MAGA because Donald Trump was a huge figure, and they thought by moving to the Right, they would get conservative viewers,” Lemon said. “It never works unless you’re going to become Fox [News], and you’re going to say in legal documents that you’re ‘entertainment.’ You should not be seen as a legitimate news organization,” he added.

Lemon also said, “If you continually carry water for one ideological [position], either Left or Right, that’s the only way it’s going to work, [to call it entertainment and not news].”

Presidential ambitions

Since leaving CNN, Lemon has started his own show and has become an outspoken critic of President Trump. He has recently said there is a “65, 70%” chance he will launch a White House bid, despite having no political experience.

Speaking on the “Can’t be Censored” podcast, Lemon said, “I actually think I would be a really good president of the United States.” He described his preference for how a campaign might be run: “What it would take is if I ran a political campaign, a presidential campaign, I would like to run it, and I don’t know if this is realistic or not, without having to beg for money. I would like it to be a voter-citizen-driven campaign for as much as it can be,” he said. “Maybe at some point I might have to take a donation. I would rather not do that.”

Earlier this year, Lemon had suggested he did not have political ambitions but said people had been encouraging him to consider a run, which prompted him to think more seriously about it.

Mixed reaction from former colleagues

According to reporting by the New York Post, former CNN colleagues of Lemon’s offered differing assessments of the prospect. One former colleague said, “Don does very much want to have influence and feel his contributions matter. Would seem other ways make more sense because running is merely raising money, which is f—ing miserable, and you can’t get anywhere.” The same person added, “I think political office is probably appealing to him. I think a presidential run is obviously not serious, but he could engage in it as a way to launchpad into another office.”

Another former colleague suggested the idea should not be dismissed, telling Fox News Digital that Lemon has stayed “relevant” since his firing and noting, “It’s the most open nomination process in 30+ years for the Dems, I think you gotta take it seriously.”